1444, Byzantium Resurrects

Chapter 278: Maritime Alliance
It is early autumn and there is already a hint of coolness in the air. In the vicinity of this city nestled between mountains and rivers, farmers are once again busy plowing the fields and sowing seeds.

This is Tabriz, the largest city in the whole of Persia and Azerbaijan. It is surrounded by rivers and lakes and mountains. There is enough arable land around the city and the transportation is relatively convenient. It connects important regions such as the Caucasus, Persia, and Mashriq. It is not only a military stronghold, but also a famous cultural and economic capital.

Two centuries ago, the Ilkhanate of the Mongol Empire established its capital here. Tabriz became increasingly prosperous under the development and construction of the two Khans Abaqa and Arighun, and finally reached its peak during the Restoration of Ghazan, becoming a prosperous city known far and wide.

After the decline of the Ilkhanate, Tabriz was captured by the Timurid Empire. A large number of scholars, craftsmen and books were moved to Samarkand by King Timur, and Tabriz was no longer what it used to be.

Timur's prosperity was only a flash in the pan. The Black Sheep Dynasty established by the Turkmen gradually rose in the constant wars, annexed a lot of land, and also established its capital in Tabriz.

During the reign of the Black Sheep King Jahan Shah, Tabriz experienced a certain degree of revival. Men of letters and scholars gathered here again, and mosques were built one after another.

A year ago, the Black Sheep King Jahan Shah died in battle. The White Sheep Dynasty advanced eastward rapidly in just a few months and easily entered Tabriz. The complacent Uzum Hassan announced that the capital would be moved there, restricted his soldiers from looting the city, and distributed the treasures and land that belonged to the Black Sheep Dynasty to his subordinates.

Not long ago, Uzung Hasan defeated several sons of the Black Sheep King Jahan Shah who still had certain strength in succession, and the Black Sheep Dynasty officially perished.

After the fall of the Black Sheep Dynasty, there was no major country in the world that had Shia Islam as its state religion. Although Uzum Hassan gave the Safavid sect great power and the Mushasha sect a certain degree of autonomy, they were Sunnis from beginning to end, but they had to do so due to the need for ruling.

The Safavid sect was a very extreme religious sect. After obtaining the power granted by Uzum Hassan, they began to preach extensively among the people and unite with their factions to attack dissidents. They were quite wary of the Sunnis, but had no patience with other small Shiite sects, and either forced them to submit or destroy them.

At this time, Tabriz was the same as usual. Everyone was doing their own thing. Cheers broke out one after another in the military camps and palaces, but ordinary people at the grassroots level obviously had little interest in the affairs of the rulers.

On the streets of Tabriz, a caravan was heading towards the palace. In the caravan, Marcus and Juventus looked around and observed the situation in Tabriz.

At this time, they had taken off their disguises and hoisted the golden-red double-headed eagle flag. The onlookers were very curious, and the Aries cavalry responsible for the escort were watching them covetously.

The citizens of Tabriz may have heard the stories left by their ancestors. A hundred years ago, several Eastern Roman delegations set foot in this city holding double-headed eagle flags, and several Eastern Roman princesses married the Khan or nobles of the Ilkhanate.

Princess Maria, who married Abagha Khan, was known for her virtue and left many marks on Tabriz. Several Armenian churches funded by her are still in operation today, spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ in a land far away from Europe.

"A very bad city, worse than a neighborhood in Constantinople."

Marcus whispered in Greek.

"The nomadic barbarians don't know how to build. Jahan Shah and Uzung Hassan were both very good monarchs, but they couldn't make this city regain its former vitality."

Juve commented.

"What a pity. Tabriz wasn't like this during the Mongol rule."

Marcus sighed.

"I have read Ibn Battuta's travel notes. According to his records, Tabriz had many scholars and writers from the East and the West. The Mongols were good at fighting, and many of the ethnic groups under their rule were good at construction. That's how Tabriz rose."

"Forget it. Nomadic peoples are always like this. They rise suddenly and then fall suddenly. This was the case with Hulagu Ulus, the Timurid Empire, and the Black Sheep Dynasty."

Juve looked around with disdain.

"The Aries Dynasty... Haha, they won't be any different."

"Be careful, this is someone else's territory."

Marcus frowned and glared at Juve.

"What are you afraid of? From the moment they recognized us, we are no longer humble merchants, but envoys of Rome."

Juve cocked his neck proudly.

"In these years, no one dared to offend the majesty of the Roman Empire."

"Forget it, let's go quickly. I still have to complete the emperor's mission."

Marcus shook his head and touched the letter of credence in his pocket.

"By the way, I heard on the way that the princes of Carthage and Sparta are both in the Caucasus. Will their actions bring some hidden dangers?"

Juve asked.

"No, our two countries came together because of interests rather than emotions. As long as the Ottoman Empire still exists, our common interests will not disappear."

Marcus' eyes flickered.

"Of course, if the common enemy disappears, there will be a war between us."

"Uzon Hassan has basically resolved the Persian issue, supported one Timurid prince to deal with another, and led his troops back to Tabriz not long ago."

"It is foreseeable that this proud monarch will not easily stop the war. Once the army is replenished and morale is restored, the first thing he will do is to march into Anatolia."

"As for Georgia, many opponents of Uzung Hasan and the Safavid Order have fled to that area. There is not much wealth there, and it is not easy to fight. Uzung Hasan will not do such a stupid thing."

Juventus thought about it and nodded slightly.

"Speaking of this, do you remember Arsalan, the Zaydi believer we met last time? The caravan from the north said that he went to the area around Lake Sevan, formed a team of more than a thousand people, and even got in touch with our Spartan prince."

"Haydar of the Safavid sect is waging jihad again. Many opponents feel the danger and have surrendered. But some cannot surrender and have begun to approach His Royal Highness."

"Yes I know."

Marcus said.

"He sent me a letter thanking me and asking me to continue to persuade the tribes who were unwilling to submit to the Safavids to seek refuge in the north and join his team."

"He also kept his promise and handed over the Armenian village under his protection to His Highness Alexios and settled it in the Holy Cross."

"A Saracen who keeps his word, that's strange."

Juve snorted.

"Okay, don't speak nonsense to a group you don't understand at all. Saracens started out as merchants and value their promises. However, there are only a few people who are willing to obey the prophet's teachings."

Marcus interrupted Juve as he saw the palace getting closer.

"You stay outside for a while, I'll go in alone."

"Okay, as you wish."

Juve shrugged.

Marcus lightly squeezed his horse's belly, took a few quick steps, and came to an Aries officer.

"General, today is such a happy day. Did your Khan win another battle?"

Marcus asked in a friendly voice in Turkmen.

"Yes."

"Timur and Qara Qara are no longer powerful, our king will be the only monarch."

The general said coldly, stopping in front of the palace gate.

"You wait here, our king has another guest."

"Oh? May I ask where this guest is from?"

Marcus asked curiously.

The general looked at him and suddenly smiled.

“Bursa.”

……

In the spacious palace, a carnival was going on. Uzon Hassan sat cross-legged on his throne, and below him were princes and nobles. Delicacies were placed on the table, and beautiful maids walked around the banquet.

This year's Ramadan was about to begin. Uzum Hassan returned to the court victoriously and held a lavish banquet in the last period before Ramadan to cultivate relationships with the generals and nobles.

Of course, these Turkmen nomadic nobles have always been rather casual in their beliefs, and the many restrictions of the Islamic Ramadan do not apply to them. They avoid crowds, hide at home, and still drink and indulge themselves.

As for the prohibition of alcohol in the Islamic world, it is nothing to those in power. If I can’t drink alcohol, can’t I just change my name?
When they were half drunk, the rough and bold nomadic nobles had already revealed their savage side. They pulled the maids and touched them all over, laughing loudly.

Uzon Hassan looked around with satisfaction, his face beaming with joy.

In the past two years, under his leadership, the White Sheep Dynasty achieved countless successes, and it leapt from a small regime huddled in a corner to the most powerful country in the entire Near East. Jahan Shah and Busayan, who once dominated the world here, have become dead bones in a grave, and the once powerful Black Sheep Dynasty and Timurid Kingdom can only bow down under his iron hoof.

Thinking of this, Wu Zong Hassan pulled over a maid and pinched her waist hard with his rough big hands.

Only when tears appeared in the maid's eyes did Uzon Hassan withdraw his hand and push her into the arms of another nobleman.

Among these maids, some were princesses of the Golden Family, some were nobles of the Black Sheep Dynasty, and some were descendants of King Timur.

They were once the apple of the eye of every big family, with good upbringing and beautiful looks, and should have enjoyed a wonderful life.

But now, they are nothing more than spoils and playthings of Uzung Hassan and his nomadic nobles.

Uzon Hassan drank a cup of fermented mare's milk, squinted his eyes, scanned the crowd, and stopped at a middle-aged man.

"Atik, you have been in Tabriz for a while now. Are you enjoying your life?"

Uzung Hasan looked at the envoy from Bursa.

"Your country is rich and prosperous, and I am living a good life."

Atik said quickly.

He was an envoy sent by the Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II to Tabriz, trying to persuade Uzung Hasan to abandon his plan to attack Anatolia and jointly deal with the invasion of Christians with the Ottoman Empire.

However, the situation changed faster than he had imagined. Uzum Hassan pacified most of Persia in a very short period of time, leaving him no time to win over the Aries nobles.

After Uzung Hasan withdrew his troops and returned to the court, he only listened to Atiq's advice casually for the first time and then threw him aside and ignored him.

Atik knew that his mission would be difficult to accomplish, but for the Sultan's instructions and the safety of the country, he had to give it a try.

"But Ramadan is coming soon. His Majesty the Sultan ordered me to return before Ramadan. I wonder if you..."

"I've thought about it."

Uzon Hassan looked at him teasingly.

"How about this, you go back and tell your Sultan to come to me in person and submit to me."

"Prince Bayezid must also come, and he will stay in my court."

"This way, there will always be peace between us."

Atik's face turned blue and red, and his chest heaved with anger.

"Is this your final answer?"

"Yes, that's it."

Uzon Hassan said arrogantly.

"There has been a long-standing feud between our two sides. It's time to understand each other."

"I don't need you to cede territory or pay compensation, nor do I need Osman's daughter."

"When my army reaches Bursa, I will take it myself!"

The nobles of the Aries Dynasty roared loudly, creating a huge noise.

"You will definitely regret your actions today." Atik looked at Uzon Hassan coldly.

"I once advised His Majesty the Sultan not to trust scum like you, and now it seems to be true."

"Back then, you betrayed us in the Battle of Ankara and joined that cripple, which led to our ultimate defeat."

"If you want to betray Allah and attack Anatolia again this time, then please come."

"Ottoman warriors will not surrender."

"Whatever you want, I won't kill you. Just get out of my palace!"

Uzon Hassan glanced at him with contempt, which drew cheers from the Turkmen nobles.

Amid the mocking and sarcastic gazes of the crowd, Atik walked towards the door in embarrassment. He was tripped by the noble and fell heavily to the ground, which caused another round of laughter.

Atik raised his head and saw that the door had already opened and a figure walked in.

The young man looked at him and smiled.

Atik recognized the emblem on the young man's clothes, which was obviously from the Ottomans' arch-enemy, the Eastern Roman Empire across the strait.

"Hurry up and leave!"

One of the nobles scolded.

Atik slowly got up, gritted his teeth, and walked out without saying a word.

"Hello, respected Khan, my name is Marcus Komnenos, from Constantinople!"

Marcus bowed slightly and spoke loudly.

The Turkmen nobles became much quieter and looked at the envoy from Europe in silence.

Wuzon Hassan waved his hand, and the maids went down. A palace lady in gorgeous dress came to the hall and sat next to Wuzon Hassan.

"Hello, dear brother. Although I have never seen you before, I still feel very close to you."

The palace lady looked at Marcus with a friendly expression.

"It is my pleasure, Princess Theodosius."

Marcus saluted again.

The lady in the palace was named Theodosius Komnenos, a princess of Trebizond, one of the Hatuns of Uzunghasan, and the mother-in-law of Haydar, the leader of the Safavid sect.

Theodosius had a relatively good status in the Aq Qoyunlu dynasty. In the Islamic world, mothers are honored by their sons. She had given birth to a son and a daughter for Uzung Hassan. Her daughter married the Safavid leader Haidar, and her son Maksood was not yet married.

Princess Theodosius not only had the blood of the Komnenos family, but also the blood of the Palaiologos and Bagration families. She was of noble status and worthy of Marcus' bow.

When Marcus saw that Uzon Hassan drove out the Ottoman envoy and summoned Princess Theodosius in, he had some vague guesses and the smile on his face became more intense.

"Emissary, I discovered you long ago when you entered my territory disguised as merchants, but I did not interfere at the time. I wanted to see what you were doing."

Uzon Hassan said.

"However, it seems that your purpose is not just to come and see me. You have played a lot of tricks in private."

"It's the same. The emperor wrote to me and told me that he had recently captured a number of spies from Tabriz and Diyarbakir in Constantinople."

Marcus shrugged.

"Then what is the meaning of your intervention in the Caucasus countries?"

Uzon Hassan asked again.

"The Kingdom of Georgia and the Circassian tribes are both Orthodox Christian countries. Our emperor is the protector of all Orthodox Christians. He should provide protection when they need it. There is no question of intervention."

Marcus said this calmly.

The Turkmen nobles were immediately indignant and glared at him.

"King Shirvan pledges allegiance to me, and the Safavid Order is also my ally. They have already told me to stop your help to Georgia and Circassia."

Uzon Hassan said calmly.

"The Circassian tribes are loyal to Your Majesty, and the Kingdom of Georgia is also Your Majesty's ally. They have already reported to Your Majesty and asked him to stop you from protecting Shirvan and Safavid."

Marcus looked at Uzon Hassan calmly.

"King, I suggest you throw this brazen Greek out before he continues to speak foul language here!"

A drunken noble shouted.

"Shut up!"

Uzon Hassan glared at him and turned to look at Marcus.

"It seems that we are doomed to not reach any consensus in this direction."

"Khan, if I were you, I would definitely not dwell too much on something that has nothing to do with you."

Marcus said slowly.

"Shirvan and Safavid are both your border vassals. You have to find something for them to do. It would be a good thing to let them weaken some of their power."

"If they become bigger and stronger, what will you gain?"

As soon as these words were spoken, some nobles became unhappy and began to curse in low voices.

The Aq Qoyunlu was ultimately a tribal alliance with a low degree of centralization, and it also had a large number of vassal states similar to the Shirvan Kingdom.

The Ayyubid remnants in Hasankeyf, the Mushasha sect in the Persian Gulf, and several small kingdoms on the southern coast of the Caspian Sea…

Wuzon Hassan said nothing and glanced at the nobles. The nobles lowered their heads and spoke in lower voices.

"In that case, let's put these matters aside for now."

Uzon Hassan's eyes flickered.

"Just state your purpose, messenger."

Marcus smiled, took out the letter he had prepared long ago and handed it to the waiter.

On the letter, the golden and red double-headed eagle emblem spread its wings as if ready to fly.

The waiter handed the letter to Uzung Hassan, who took it but did not open it.

"You Europeans always like to use words in a mysterious way. I don't like it. Let's be frank."

Uzon Hassan looked at Marcus with amusement.

Marcus ignored Uzon Hassan's rude behavior and the smile on his face became even more intense.

"The Emperor invites you on a hunting trip."

"What to hunt? Where to hunt?"

"Hunting a wounded brown bear, its lair is in Anatolia."

Marcus said.

Uzon Hassan had already planned this and just nodded slightly.

"My hounds need rest, and my hunting knives need sharpening."

"That's fine, so are we."

Marcus said.

"The brown bear has blocked the entrance to his cave with hard rocks. Can you break it open?"

"That's nothing for you to worry about."

Marcus looked at Uzon Hassan.

"Where's the brown bear's body? How do we cut it up?"

Uzon Hassan asked again.

"Each one depends on his ability."

Marcus said calmly.

After a moment of silence, Uzon Hassan spoke slowly.

"Your position is too low. I need a formal meeting."

"One month later, Black Sea sailing ship."

Marcus said simply.

……

On October 1469, 10, the Sun of Cairo arrived at the coast of Trebizond. The envoys of the Aq Qoyunlu boarded the giant ship from the port of Trebizond and the two sides began negotiations.

The Eastern Roman Empire sent its old but still strong Foreign Minister Sphrangis, while the Aq Qoyunlu was represented by Jacob, the son of Uzum Hasan.

In the spacious cabin, the two delegations began to argue over the attack on the Ottoman Empire, and one agreement after another was recognized by both sides.

A week later, the talks officially ended, and the Eastern Roman Empire would conclude an alliance with the Aq Qoyunlu, targeting the Ottoman Empire which was caught in the middle.

According to the alliance agreement, the Eastern Roman Empire and the Aq Qoyunlu would immediately declare war on the Ottoman Empire and launch a general offensive against the Ottoman Empire one year later until they completely collapsed.

As for the results of the war, the two sides temporarily agreed to use Ankara as the boundary, with the area west of Ankara belonging to the Eastern Roman Empire and the area east of Ankara belonging to the Aq Qoyunlu Dynasty.

Of course, everyone knew that these unclear divisions of power were of no use at all. The Eastern Roman Empire would not sit idly by and watch the eastern part of Asia Minor fall into the hands of the Ayuntamiento, and the Ayuntamio would not turn a blind eye to the rich cities in the west.

At the end of October 1469, the Eastern Roman Emperor Isaac and the White Sheep King Uzung Hasan signed and sealed the negotiation agreement respectively, formally concluding the "Maritime Alliance".

On October 10, the Eastern Roman Empire presented an ultimatum to the Ottoman Empire, demanding that Mehmed II withdraw from all territories on the eastern coast of the Aegean Sea, but was rejected.

The next day, Isaac gave a speech in the Grand Palace in Constantinople, enumerating the ten major crimes of the Ottoman Empire and declaring war on Mehmed II, threatening to never recover the lost territory.

On October 10, the Aq Qoyunlu expelled all Ottoman envoys who were still in Tabriz and Diyarbakir, and several border tribes began to enter Ottoman territory, looting caravans and villages.

On November 11, some ships of the three major fleets of the Eastern Roman Empire began to gather in the Aegean Sea. They would launch unlimited attacks on the Ottoman coast, cut off their trade routes, and interfere with their sight and hearing.

At the same time, the Eastern Roman Empire began to gather its troops on the western coast of the Aegean Sea, eyeing the other side, waiting for the best opportunity.

On November 11, Mehmed II summoned all his ministers and announced that he would prepare the army for war, mobilize all available soldiers, and withdraw all silver for military pay, vowing to fight to the death to defend the heritage passed down by his ancestors.

At this point, the peace that had lasted for several years in Anatolia officially ended, and the shadow of total war loomed over Anatolia.

The Great Turkish War breaks out.

(End of this chapter)